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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a great time
  4. land — ground
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. chest — of your body
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. land — a country
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. land — to come down
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. chest — a box
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. ball — a round shape

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com